No compromise on supremacy of Assembly : PA Speaker

LAHORE, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st Apr, 2026) Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan on Tuesday said

that there would be no compromise on the supremacy of the Assembly, asserting

that the authority to impose taxes and legislate rests solely with the elected

House and could not be transferred to any other institution.

Addressing a press conference at the Punjab Assembly, the Speaker said that

limiting constitutional powers through SROs was not acceptable and questioned

how long elected representatives would have to act as a barrier against such

practices. He stressed that all matters related to legislation and taxation must

remain within the constitutional domain of Parliament.

He said that even after 70 years, institutions had not been developed to ensure

adherence to the law by those responsible for its enforcement, adding that the

country’s direction lies in their hands. He urged Members of the Assembly to

actively fulfill their representative responsibilities and uphold parliamentary supremacy.

The Speaker said all taxation-related decisions would now be made by the Assembly,

and no one would be allowed to encroach upon its constitutional authority.

He emphasized that the path to national progress must go through Parliament

and not through non-elected institutions.

Referring to the issue of agricultural income tax, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan

said the matter was not a conflict with the bureaucracy but a question of constitutional

jurisdiction. He clarified that while the tax was intended for large corporate farming

sectors, the authority to impose or withdraw it rests solely with the Assembly.

He informed that the Cabinet had referred the matter to a committee to determine

exemptions, while reiterating that under Article 77 of the Constitution, all taxes must be

presented before the Assembly. He added that the issue of agriculture income tax had

been under discussion for the past eight months and would be resolved strictly

in accordance with constitutional and legal requirements.